“The remaining structure at the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside, Florida, was demolished last night. Search and rescue efforts were paused before the demolition, but will pick back up once the area is secure. Crews may actually be able to access more areas in the rubble now because of the demolition process. At least 24 people are confirmed dead, and 121 are unaccounted for.” Read more at CNN
“About 50% of the US population is vaccinated against Covid-19, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci. But unvaccinated pockets of the country remain extremely vulnerable -- and the holiday weekend may make them worse. The South, Southwest and parts of the Midwest are starting to see surges. Florida alone accounts for about 17% of all new US cases. More than 99% of US Covid-19 deaths in June were among unvaccinated people.” Read more at CNN
President Biden spoke during an Independence Day celebration on the South Lawn of the White House on July 4, 2021, in Washington.PATRICK SEMANSKY/ASSOCIATED PRESS
“WASHINGTON — On the day that President Joe Biden had long anticipated as a milestone in the fight against the coronavirus, the White House hosted a celebration to both commemorate the Fourth of July and herald the administration’s progress toward overcoming the pandemic.
In bringing together about 1,000 people for the largest planned event of Biden’s presidency, the White House has been forced to walk a fine line, striving to signal progress toward restoring normalcy while still acknowledging the dangers of a pandemic that continues to claim hundreds of lives a day.
Biden continued that strategy Sunday, comparing the nation’s fight for independence with the battle against the coronavirus.” Read more at Boston Globe
“In prosecutors’ telling, the Trump Organization provided a road map for its own indictment.
In documents filed in New York Supreme Court last week, prosecutors claimed that the company had spent 15 years paying its chief financial officer ‘off the books,’ giving him cars, an apartment, tuition payments, and cash that were hidden from income tax authorities.
But at the same time, according to allegations included in the indictment, the Trump Organization also was keeping internal spreadsheets that tallied the payments that were being hidden.
Prosecutors treated the spreadsheets as the accounting equivalent of a confession. They said the ledgers themselves showed the size of the fraud, estimating that the CFO, Allen Weisselberg, alone had avoided paying more than $900,000 in taxes. And that concealment, they said, showed that the Trump Organization knew it was wrong.” Read more at Boston Globe
“Army Gen. Austin Scott Miller, the top US military official overseeing the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, says there should be concern about new Taliban advances. As the withdrawal enters its final stages, questions are rising about the pace of troop withdrawal, the deteriorating security in Afghanistan, and the US' long-term strategy there. The Biden administration still hasn't finalized its policy for pursuing terrorists in the country once US troops have departed.” Read more at CNN
“Pope Francis is recovering after undergoing surgery yesterday for colon diverticulitis. The 84-year-old pontiff ‘reacted well’ to the procedure, according to the Vatican. Colon diverticulitis is a common condition affecting more than half of adults in the United States, and is more common as people age.” Read more at CNN
“PLAINS, Ga. — Jimmy Carter, a midshipman in the US Naval Academy, wanted to marry Rosalynn Smith, a girl he met on the day she was born and knew mostly as his sister Ruth’s best friend until they went on a double date, riding to the movies together squeezed in the rumble seat of an old Ford.
He asked.
She said no.
Of course, he persisted. And on a recent morning, the pair of them — the former president and Mrs. Carter — were still side by side, his hand resting on top of hers, explaining that the rejection had merely been a hiccup before a marriage that is about to reach its 75th anniversary.” Read more at Boston Globe
“Amazon founder Jeff Bezos formally steps down as CEO on Monday, the 24th anniversary of the company's incorporation. Taking over for Bezos is Andy Jassy, an executive who has been with Amazon since 1997 and previously worked as CEO of Amazon Web Services, the company's cloud computing service. Although the tech giant will have new leadership, Bezos will stay on as an executive chair on the company's board. In that role, he will be involved in many ‘important decisions: acquisitions, things like strategy and going into grocery and other things,’ Amazon's chief financial officer Brian Olsavsky told investors.” Read more at USA Today
“Officials and residents in Florida are monitoring Tropical Storm Elsa Monday as it moves closer to the state. Elsa, downgraded from being the first hurricane of the 2021 season, swept along Cuba's southern coast early Monday, and forecasters said it could make landfall on the island's central shore by midafternoon. Elsa was forecast to cross over Cuba by Monday night and then head for Florida, where Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 15 counties. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the center said the storm was likely to gradually weaken while passing over central Cuba. “After Elsa emerges over the Florida Straits and the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, some slight re-strengthening is possible,'' the center said.” Read more at USA Today
A lobster is part of the day’s catch on a trawler working off the Manacles rocks in Cornwall, England, on March 17. (Hugh Hastings/Getty Images)
“LONDON — How does a lobster feel when it's dropped into the boiling pot? The British Parliament wants to know.
Is an octopus sad, sometimes? Does the squid learn its lessons? The bee feel joy? The earthworm anxiety? The peers in the House of Lords are currently debating the matter.
These questions arise because Prime Minister Boris Johnson is trying to make good on his electoral pledge to enshrine into law the idea that animals are ‘sentient beings,’ meaning the government would be obligated to not only safeguard creatures’ physical well-being but also take into account their feelings — of pleasure, pain and more.
The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill is a potentially sweeping piece of legislation that could require all arms of government — not just the agriculture ministry — to consider animal sentience when forming policy and writing regulations.” Read more at Washington Post
“Tensions rise | Former South African President Jacob Zuma won Constitutional Court agreement to consider his application for a review of its decision to jail him for 15 months for contempt. He accused the nation’s top court of unfairly convicting him, as supporters gathered at his rural homestead in the eastern KwaZulu-Natal province yesterday, vowing to resist any attempt to arrest him.” Read more at Bloomberg
Zuma supporters gather yesterday at his home in Nkandla.
Photographer: Emmanuel Croset/AFP/Getty Images
“Tepid result | Japan’s ruling coalition fell short of a majority in a Tokyo assembly vote, indicating some fragility for Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s government as virus numbers rise. The result may prompt Suga to advance plans for more spending ahead of a general election due later this year.” Read more at Bloomberg
“The hackers behind the latest mass ransomware attack exploited previously unknown vulnerabilities in IT management software made by Miami-based Kaseya, a sign of the skill of the Russia-linked group REvil believed responsible. Stockholm-based TrueSec says its investigations involving multiple victims in Sweden found hackers used a flaw in Kaseya’s code to push ransomware to servers that used the software and were connected to the internet.” Read more at Bloomberg
Computer code displayed on screens in Danbury, U.K.
Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
“Police are looking for the person who shot and killed pro golfer Gene Siller at a country club in Kennesaw, Georgia. Siller approached a truck that had driven onto the golf course and was shot by the driver, according to a witness. The suspect then fled the scene. Police found the bodies of two other men in the bed of the truck, which was still on the green.” Read more at CNN
“Joey Chestnut won his 14th Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest in dominant fashion, devouring a new record 76 franks in 10 minutes.” Read more at USA Today
Winners Joey Chestnut and Michelle Lesco, obscured behind hot dogs, pose at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest.Brittainy Newman, AP